Effect of organic nitrogen management practices on growth attributes of wheat (Triticum aestivum L.)

Introduction

Wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) is one of the most important cereal crops and serves as a staple food for a large proportion of the world's population (Choudhary et al., 2017; Sharma et al., 2024; Manohar et al., 2025; Choudhary et al., 2024) [8,9,29,30,31,20,7] . In India, wheat occupies a prominent position among food grain crops and contributes significantly to national food security (Meena et al., 2024; Singh, 2021; Sharma et al., 2024; Manohar et al., 2025; Choudhary et al., 2024) [21,32,29,30,31,20,7] . Increasing demand for wheat production necessitates the adoption of sustainable nutrient management practices that enhance productivity while maintaining soil health and environmental quality (Khatua et [16,8,9,12,1,10] . Nitrogen is one of the most essential nutrients required for the growth and development of wheat, strongly influencing yield, protein content, and biomass production (Singh et [33,8,9,12,4,40,13,1] . It plays a vital role in chlorophyll formation, photosynthesis, protein synthesis, and vegetative growth (Singh et [12,4,13,1] . Conventional wheat cultivation largely depends on chemical fertilizers for meeting nitrogen requirements; however, continuous and indiscriminate use of inorganic fertilizers has led to deterioration of soil fertility, nutrient imbalance, reduced microbial activity, and environmental pollution (Khatua et [16,8,9,12,13,1,10] .

Organic sources such as Farm Yard Manure (FYM), Jeevamrit/Jeevamrut, and Panchagavya have gained considerable attention in sustainable agriculture due to their beneficial effects on soil physical, chemical, and biological properties (Khatua et al., 2025 [16,8,9,12,11,13,10] . FYM improves soil structure, water-holding capacity, and nutrient availability (Khatua et al., 2025 [16,8,9,12,13,1,10] , while Jeevamrit and Panchagavya act as bio-enhancers containing beneficial microorganisms, enzymes, plant growth regulators, and micronutrients (Khatua et al., 2025 [16,8,9,11,13] . These organic formulations stimulate microbial activity and improve nutrient mineralization, thereby enhancing plant growth and development (Khatua et [16,8,9,12,11,13] . Split application of nitrogen at critical growth stages such as crown root initiation and tillering ensures synchronized nutrient availability with crop demand, improving nitrogen use efficiency and yield (Singh et al., 2020 [33,8,9,12,4,40,1] . Integration of organic nutrient sources with liquid organic formulations may therefore provide a balanced and sustained nutrient supply to wheat plants and improve crop performance, especially under organic or integrated systems (Khatua et [16,8,9,12,13,1,10] . Keeping these facts in view, the present investigation was undertaken to study the effect of different organic nitrogen management practices on emergence count, plant height, dry matter accumulation, and number of tillers of wheat under organic production systems (Khatua et [16,8,9,12,13,10] .

Materials and methods

Experimental site

The present investigation entitled "Effect of Organic Nitrogen Management Practices on Growth Attributes of Wheat (Triticum aestivum L.)" was conducted during the Rabi season of 2025-26 at the Agriculture Research Farm of Career Point University. The experimental farm is situated in the south-eastern region of Rajasthan and falls under the semi-arid agro-climatic zone characterized by hot summers and cool winters. The region receives moderate rainfall, most of which occurs during the monsoon season.

The experimental field was nearly levelled, well drained, and suitable for wheat cultivation. The soil of the experimental site represented the typical wheat-growing soils of south-eastern Rajasthan. Before sowing, composite soil samples were collected randomly from different locations of the field at 0-15 cm depth and analyzed for physico-chemical properties such as soil pH, electrical conductivity, organic carbon, and available nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium using standard analytical procedures.

Climatic Conditions

The climate of the Kota region is semi-arid with distinct winter and summer seasons. During the crop growth period, the prevailing weather conditions remained favorable for wheat cultivation. The average temperature during the Rabi season ranged between 8 °C and 30 °C. The crop received congenial environmental conditions during vegetative as well as reproductive growth stages. Irrigation water was applied according to treatment requirements to avoid moisture stress during crop growth.

Experimental Material

The wheat variety Raj 4037 was used for the present investigation. The variety is suitable for cultivation under Rajasthan conditions and possesses good yield potential and adaptability under irrigated conditions.

Experimental Details

The experiment was laid out in a Randomized Block Design (RBD) comprising eight treatments with three replications. N₁+Jeevamrit @ 500Lha⁻¹atsowingandfirstirrigation+Panchagavya @ 3% sprayatpre-floweringstage N6 N₂+Jeevamrit @ 500Lha⁻¹atsowingandfirstirrigation+Panchagavya @ 3% sprayatpre-floweringstage N7 N₃+Jeevamrit @ 500Lha⁻¹atsowingandfirstirrigation+Panchagavya @ 3% sprayatpre-floweringstage N8 N₄+Jeevamrit @ 500Lha⁻¹atsowingandfirstirrigation+Panchagavya @ 3% sprayatpre-floweringstage

Experimental Details

Land Preparation

The experimental field was prepared thoroughly to obtain fine tilth for proper germination and establishment of the crop. Initially, the field was ploughed with a tractor-drawn mould board plough followed by two cross harrowings. Planking was done after each tillage operation to conserve soil moisture and pulverize the soil properly. Well-decomposed FYM was incorporated into the soil before sowing according to treatment requirements.

Preparation and application of organic inputs Farm Yard Manure (FYM)

Well-decomposed FYM was used as the major organic source of nitrogen. The quantity of FYM required for each treatment was calculated on the basis of the recommended dose of nitrogen (RDN) and nitrogen content present in FYM. FYM was applied either as basal or in split doses according to treatment combinations.

Jeevamrit

Jeevamrit is a fermented liquid organic formulation prepared using indigenous cow products and organic ingredients. The formulation was prepared using the following ingredients:

All ingredients were mixed thoroughly in a plastic drum and allowed to ferment for 5-7 days with regular stirring twice daily. Jeevamrit was applied @ 500 L ha ¹ at sowing and at first irrigation ⁻ according to the treatment schedule.

Panchagavya

Panchagavya is an organic growth stimulant prepared from cowbased products including cow dung, cow urine, milk, curd, and ghee along with jaggery and banana. The prepared Panchagavya solution was diluted to 3% concentration for foliar spray. Foliar application of Panchagavya @ 3% was carried out at preflowering stage using a knapsack sprayer during morning hours.

Sowing of Crop

The crop was sown during the Rabi season of 2025-26 using the recommended seed rate. Sowing was carried out manually in rows spaced 22.5 cm apart. Uniform seed placement and adequate soil moisture were maintained to ensure proper germination and crop establishment.

Irrigation Management

Irrigation was applied uniformly to all plots except treatment variations involving split application of organic nitrogen. The first irrigation was applied at Crown Root Initiation (CRI) stage followed by subsequent irrigations at tillering, booting, flowering, and grain filling stages according to crop requirement.

Intercultural Operations

Necessary intercultural operations such as weeding and hoeing were carried out periodically to keep the experimental field free from weeds. Plant protection measures were adopted whenever necessary to protect the crop from insect pests and diseases. [29,30,31,21,16,4,11] . [29,30,31,34,21,24] [29,30,31,34,21,4,37] . Panchagavya contains nutrients, beneficial microorganisms and growth promoting substances (including plant hormones) that stimulate vegetative growth and biomass accumulation in several field crops (Sharma et [29,30,31,6,2,34,38,5,37] . Improved nitrogen availability during critical crop growth stages such as tillering and stem elongation has been shown to enhance N supply to wheat and other cereals, supporting greater growth and N use efficiency (Bagri & Bhadauria, 2023; Sunil, 2020; Bhardwaj et al., 2021) [2,34,4] . This synchronized nutrient supply and improved soil biological activity likely enhanced cell division and elongation in meristematic tissues, resulting in increased plant height under integrated organic nutrient management like N8 ( [6,34,21,4,37] .

Emergence count

Dry matter accumulation

Dry matter accumulation was recorded at 30-day intervals during crop growth. Five representative plants were uprooted carefully from each plot and washed thoroughly with clean water to remove adhered soil particles. The plant samples were initially shade dried and subsequently oven dried at 65±5 °C until constant weight was obtained. The dried samples were weighed using an electronic digital balance and dry matter accumulation was expressed as g plant ¹. ⁻ Dry matter accumulation increased continuously with crop age under all treatments. Significant differences among treatments were observed at all growth stages. The highest dry matter accumulation at harvest (46.57 g plant-1) was recorded under treatment N₈, followed by Nu₇ (42.77 g plant-1) and N₆ (39.23 g plant-1). The lowest dry matter accumulation (24.80 g plant-1) was recorded under Nu₁. Higher dry matter accumulation under integrated organic nitrogen management treatments may be attributed to improved nutrient uptake, enhanced photosynthetic efficiency, and better root development (Bhardwaj et [29,30,31,32,39,25,7] . Split application of nitrogen also ensured synchronized nutrient availability with crop demand, resulting in better vegetative growth and dry matter production ( [29,30,31,4,36,3] .

Number of tillers per meter row length

The number of tillers was recorded at 30-day intervals during crop growth. One meter row length was selected randomly at two different places in each plot and all tillers present within the selected row length were counted manually. The average number of tillers was calculated and expressed as tillers per meter row length.

Statistical Analysis

The experimental data recorded for various observations were statistically analyzed using the analysis of variance (ANOVA) technique appropriate for Randomized Block Design as described by Gomez and Gomez (1984). The significance of treatment effects was tested using the F-test at 5% level of significance. Standard error of mean [SEm (±)] and critical difference (CD) at P=0.05 were calculated for comparing treatment means wherever treatment effects were found significant. [29,30,31,27,19] . Adequate nutrient supply through split nitrogen application enhanced meristematic activity and tiller formation, with studies reporting higher effective tillers and yield where N was applied in splits rather than a single basal dose (Sharma et [29,30,31,22,7,18,28] . In addition, the bio enhancing effects of Jeevamrit and Panchagavya might have stimulated physiological activities and root growth, resulting in increased tillering capacity, since these liquid organics and related formulations increased microbial populations, nutrient mineralization, growth promoting substances, and effective tillers or tillers per plant in wheat and other cereals (Sharma et [29,30,31,42,17,19,18,33,35,41] .

Results and Discussion

Conclusion

Based on the results of the present investigation, it can be concluded that organic nitrogen management practices significantly influenced the growth attributes of wheat (Triticum aestivum L.). Among the different treatments, application of 50% RDN through FYM as basal along with split nitrogen application through irrigation supplemented with Jeevamrit @ 500 L ha-1 and Panchagavya @ 3% spray (N8) proved most effective in improving emergence count, plant height, dry matter accumulation, and number of tillers. The superior performance of treatment N8 may be attributed to balanced and continuous nutrient availability, enhanced microbial activity, improved soil health, and growth-promoting effects of Jeevamrit and Panchagavya. Integrated use of FYM with liquid organic formulations and split nitrogen application ensured better nutrient synchronization with crop demand, resulting in enhanced vegetative growth and biomass production. Therefore, integrated organic nitrogen management involving FYM, Jeevamrit, and Panchagavya can be recommended as a sustainable and ecofriendly nutrient management strategy for improving growth performance of wheat under the south-eastern region of Rajasthan.

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